Chinese armed forces mobilize swift response to Gansu earthquake

BEIJING, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the People's Armed Police Force (PAPF) have deployed multiple rescue forces to quake-hit areas in response to a 6.2-magnitude earthquake that jolted northwest China's Gansu Province late Monday.

According to the PLA Western Theater Command, at 4: 00 a.m. on Tuesday, around 300 troops from the command arrived in the hard-hit Jishishan County, Gansu. They were tasked with missions that involved searching for victims, rescue operations, and roadway clearing.

The PAPF Gansu Corps has mobilized over 300 officers and soldiers and deployed more than 40 vehicles to Jishishan. Their assigned tasks included searching for and rescuing individuals, facilitating the transfer of the injured, clearing obstructed roadways, and establishing tents as shelters.

The command added that a team of officers and soldiers of the PAPF Qinghai Corps had arrived in Minhe County, a severely affected area in Gansu's neighboring province of Qinghai. Additional rescue personnel are currently mobilizing for deployment.